May ‘lost’ seats, may lose her post too but government may remain

There are good news for Malaysian parents with children in UK universities. The British pound has just dropped further after the election results were announced. The Conservatives lost their majority in the government and would not have to form a government with support from other parties. Oh yeah, by the way, I do not agree that Brexit will be positive for Britain. To me, integration is much better than separation simply because of the bigger market access. Trading nations cannot trade if they have no partners to trade. Without any doubt, economically, Britain is in better shape than many of the European Union (EU) countries BUT going alone is not going to be sufficient. Alone (even if it’s the UK), it would need to quickly expand its trade partners or some of its domestic businesses would start to lose business versus competitors based within the EU. Well, my wish for Britain to reconsider Brexit is not coming true.

Theresa May has just announced that she would form a new government with the support of a small party. Full article here in abcnews.go.com This is her statement, “I will now form a government.” Her ‘partner’ is Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party which won 10 seats. Together, they have 328 seats between them and this gives them a very slim simple majority in the parliament. A minimum of 326 seats are needed to form the new government. Oh yeah, this is what her ‘partner’ DUP leader Arleme Foster said, “I certainly think that there will be contact made over the weekend, but I think it’s too soon to talk about what we’re going to do.” Okay, does not sound enthusiastic but not negative lah. The article described the two parties as a friendly party to the other. The other point to note is that without DUP’s support, Labour party will not be able to form the government as it will never be able to reach the 326 seats needed. Well, unless DUP’s negotiation with Conservatives fail.

A few more interesting readings. TheGuardian.com: How did Theresa May’s gamble fail? The title says it all. Most observers have expected May to lead her party to an even more comfortable victory but it did not happen. This article shows everything in numbers.

Next one is by the main newspaper that I read when I was a student in Britain. independent.co.uk: Theresa May to remain PM after forming government with DUP Basically, what it expects is that Theresa May would remain PM as per what she vowed after getting an ‘Irish Bailout.’ She said, “Our two parties have enjoyed a strong relationship over many years, and this gives me the confidence to believe that we will be able to work together in the interests of the whole United Kingdom.”

There’s also one about the potential of another famous personality replacing Theresa May as PM. Remember Boris Johnson? Here’s that article in cnbc.com It quoted U.K. bookmakers betting odds. The odds for Johnson to replace May is now 5-1 from 66-1 previously. This is a funny one to say the least but let’s just say that if I could buy, then I would just bet a pound on Johnson. 🙂

Happy following and may the new government somehow change its view about Brexit? Cheers.